As a member of the League, you will be playing a role in the women's arts organization with the greatest longevity in the country and be part of the dynamic vitality engendered by creative women uniting in the pursuit of meaningful goals and worthwhile projects. The League encourages its members to take an active role in exploring creative pursuits, sharing their professional talents, and bringing a greater awareness to their communities of the value of the arts and of the League's mission of outreach and education. The results of the creative process in putting pen or brush to page have long helped Pen Women bring about change and give women a greater voice.

Women of all ages and degrees of experience gain enriching perspectives from the multi-faceted activities and achievements of their colleagues. A continuing benefit is the interaction of League members with one another in a spirit of mutual support, camaraderie, and personal and collective advancement. As a member, you are always welcome to stay at the historic Pen Arts building in the DuPont Circle area of Washington D.C. for a modest contribution on a space-available basis. You will also receive The Pen Woman magazine and are welcome to contribute to it.

Thousands of our members in branches throughout the country and throughout our long history have understood the power of words to initiate action, the power of art to move and inspire, and the power of an arranged score to nourish the universal soul. Upon becoming a member of the League, you enter an organization whose many historic members include Ida Tarbell, Carrie Jacobs Bond, Margaret Sanger, Amy Beach, Willa Cather, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Eleanor Roosevelt, Clare Booth Luce, Eudora Welty, Helen Keller, and Hillary Rodham Clinton.

The following are summaries of eligibility and qualification requirements. The application form contains detailed information that should be read and followed. The National Membership Committee is flexible to developing new categories.

Letters ~ Professional women eligible for letters membership include authors, co-authors, advertising sales promoters, compilers, dramatists, editors, genealogists, lecturers, librettists, lyric writers, periodical writers, photo journalists, poets, press writers, script writers for communication media or motion pictures, research workers, and musicologists. Required credentials proof of publication and payment.

Art ~ Professional women eligible for the art membership include architects, cartoonists, craftswomen, designers, graphic artists, illustrators, painters, photographers, and sculptors. Credentials submitted must include proof of payment for works or services and, for exhibiting artists, proof of work accepted in three juried exhibitions. In addition, the painter, sculptor, craftsman, or graphic artist must show proof of work accepted for at least three select juried exhibitions.

Composition in Music and Dance ~ Professional women eligible for the music membership may present original compositions or original creative arrangements that have been professionally published or performed in a public forum. Choreographers shall present notated scores or videor or filmed performances. Credentials shall be accompanied by proof of payment, or salary, for creating and directing the work submitted.

Upon invitation by a current member to join the League, the candidate completes an application for membership which is then signed by a sponsor and an endorser, both Active members in good standing. The application, with accompanying credentials qualifying the candidate for membership in Letters, Art, or Music, is presented along with the required fees to the Branch Membership Committee. After acceptance of the applicant at a branch meeting, the Committee forwards the application packet to the designated National Membership Chair by category for consideration.

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